Provision- Evaporate

Originally released in 2002 and then reissued last year, Provision’s debut full-length shows a fair amount of promise but also a number of areas in need of improvement. The band displays a lot of New Order and early Depeche Mode influences, and the beats and analog synths on “Breathe” and “My Only Question” are particularly memorable, as is the darker-textured title track “Evaporate.” Lyrically, however, Provision’s first effort doesn’t always manage to rise above simplistic couplets and painful clichés. “In Love” and “This Moment” are particularly glaring examples, and the sub-par songwriting is enough to mar these otherwise catchy pop tunes. The production on this album can also be amateurish at times, and the generally uneven mixing a distraction from Provision’s decent – if not always exceptional – songwriting. In the band’s favor, although they’re clearly influenced by ‘80s synthpop, they never come across like a Depeche Mode or Erasure rip-off, and manage to create an original sound within the overall synthpop formula. Due to the fluctuating quality of this album, however, it will probably be of interest mainly to people who are already fans of Provision’s later material; newcomers would just be turned off.

Visit Provision online at www.provision-musik.com.